Anthony D’Arco

March 3, 2016

New York Armory Week & Expansion of International Art Fairs

With the end of Armory Arts Week in New York (Feb. 28-March 6^th), we thought it would be a good time to follow-up on our blog last year about the future of international art fairs by examining the rising importance of New York as a hub for such fairs.

As explained in Video #6 in our Know2collect library, while a handful of art fairs existed as long ago as the 15^th century, we are now witnessing an exponential growth in their popularity with more than 200 being held in this century around the globe annually.

Klaus von Nitchssagend Gallery Booth at Armory Show 2016 (Photo by Adam Reich for Artsy)

In New York, the art fair season is kicked off every March with two major international fairs known as “The Art Show” at the Park Avenue Armory and the “Armory Show” at Piers 92 & 94. Sponsored by the Art Dealer’s Association of America and in its 28^th year, the former features works ranging from Old Masters to Contemporary from 70 member American galleries and the latter, founded in 1994, features modern and contemporary art from over 200 galleries around the globe. Significant satellite fairs have also sprung up during Armory Arts Week such as Independent New York, Pulse New York, and Spring/Break Art Show. And, in May each year, NYC again sizzles with even more major annual art fairs, including NADA (New Art Dealer’s Alliance) (May 14-17) and Frieze (May 5-8).

Hanging works by Danh Vo at Marian Goodman’s space, Frieze NY 2015 (Photo published by artnet news, 12/18/14)

And while it is not surprising that the Big Apple has been and continues to be a mecca for globe-trotting art enthusiasts, what is interesting is that the success of such fairs have prompted other important international art fairs abroad to expand their fairs by adding NY as an additional location.

As reported by Brian Boucher of artnet news, TEFAF (The European Fine Arts Fair), one of the oldest international art fairs has announced that it is coming to NYC. Following the lead of other prestigious international fairs like Frieze London which opened 2 new Frieze fairs (Frieze Masters and Frieze NY) in NYC in 2012, TEFAF will no longer be limited to its annual March fair in Maastricht, Netherlands, but will add two new fairs in NYC: October, 2016 (featuring antiquities to the 20th century) and Spring of 2017 (modern and contemporary art).

According to Boucher, while such plans for expansion carry inherent risks, it may be that the competitive global market is now compelling art fairs to have more convenient locations that are regional and closer to buyers. Indeed, this development mirrors the phenomenon being observed with mega galleries like Gagosian, Pace and Hauser & Wirth which we also covered in Video #5 and which Boucher points out are opening more and more international locations.

Time will tell whether the proliferation of even more international art fairs will dilute the quality and focus of such fairs and whether the collector will really be better served.

Shannon Robinson is the curator and chairperson of the national biennial exhibitions Windows to the Divine (Nov. 17-Dec. 13, 2016) and the national symposiums sponsored by Collectors for Connoisseurship (Nov. 2015 at Denver Art Museum and Oct. 2017). More about Shannon…

September 25, 2015

Founding Connoisseur Confirmation of Membership

Thank you for becoming a Founding Connoisseur of Collectors for Connoisseurship! Your membership helps us to promote the vocations of the living artist and the Dominicans.

To log-in to the Members-Only programs and benefits:

Go to our website at www.windowstothedivine.org and click on “Member Login” on the Main Menu on the Home Page (or any page of the website);
You will see a box for User Name. Please type in your email address which is your user name;
You will also see a box for your password. For security reasons, your temporary assigned password was sent to you via separate email;
If you have joined as a “couple,” and would each like to post separate photos/bios in our collector member directory, you will need to each have your own account which requires a different email for each of you; alternately, you may provide one email address and will be given one password/log in that you will share. Please let us know your preference.
You will then see the Welcome page with a list of the most important links for our collectors;
Please click on Collector Member Profile on the welcome page or on the Member Only Menu;
Please complete the Collector Member Profile and Change Your Password where indicated.
If you wish to comment on our blogs or forum topics anonymously, collectors are permitted to use a “Display Name.” We would recommend the last name of a famous artist followed by at least three numerals. For example, Monet001.
Once you complete your profile, you can then click on the Collector Member Directory to see the information that will appear in the directory. If you wish to edit the information, click on Collector Member Profile in your Member Only Menu and you will be returned to your profile where you may make any edits. Please note that this directory can only be viewed by Collector members and is not open to ArtLover members or the public.

Now, enjoy the site, including our video library (click on free Know2collect Videos on menu) and our Collector Forum (converse with other collector members).

Thank you again for your support of our Foundation which is a 501 (c)(3) tax-exempt organization. For tax purposes, you will receive an IRS Acknowledgement from us for your donation.

Please do not hesitate to call or email me if you have any questions.

Sincerely,

Shannon Robinson, President
Colorado Dominican Vocation Foundation
(303) 679-1365

https://windowstothedivine.org/2015/09/25/2258-2/

September 8, 2015

Lynn Kircher

Born in Decatur, Illinois, Lynn grew up in Saint Louis. At the age of nine he started studying the masters Michelangelo, Bridgeman and Shephard. In high school, he continued studies with the Minneapolis School of Art on a full scholarship. Enlisting early at the age of 17, he joined the “kiddy cruise” to Viet Nam, to fund his way for art school. In 1968 he started studies with John Jellico at the Colorado Institute of Art and maintained his ties with this institution for the next 27 years, first as a student and then as a teacher. He taught over 53 subjects and left to be a full time artist when the Institute switched to a more technologically oriented program as the Art Institutes International.

During his teaching career Lynn pioneered teacher training programs working with Houghton Mifflin and the Master Student text. He continues this work to this day as a consultant with private schools helping teachers find a passion for teaching. From 2005 to 2014 he joined the School Board for the R-1 School District in Costilla County, Colorado and helped build a new school.

Following in the footsteps of his early artistic heroes and teachers who contributed to the trove of artistic treasures in Rome, Lynn presented a torso of his first crucifix to His Holiness John Paul II for the Vatican collection in 2002. Subsequent to his acceptance in this Collection and his own interview with Pope John Paul, Lynn was asked how he felt about this international recognition. “Humbled” he replied, “… with great honor comes great responsibility, to take my skill to a new level.”

In 1997 he left the Art Institutes and turned to his studio in the southern part of the San Luis Valley His studio, which he runs with his spouse Jane, has placed hundreds of sculptures in churches nationwide. His latest project brought him to the leadership of a group of 9 other renowned artists to craft a set of heroic sized bronzes for a retreat center outside of Omaha, Nebraska, Cloisters on the Platte, to depict the Stations of the Cross.

About the Artist
By John Jellico
Former Associate Editor American Artist Magazine
Former Assistant Editor Southwestern Art

… In all of his works he communicates his overflowing passionateness, his ecstatic appreciation for reaching others through his art. He achieves this high expressiveness by daring use of color with new and surprising strokes and lines…

…His bronzes seem to embody a definite feeling of humility and passion… The mystery of creation has always been a subject of inspiration to Lynn…

…the Process

An art teacher for over twenty years, Lynn is well acquainted with communications, interpersonal relations, and materials and is at home with paint or clay and production of bronzes. The years he spent as head of the Life Drawing Department the Institute and in the solitude of his studio refined his portrayal of inspirational figurative work and helped mature his work with a sound understanding of anatomy and emotional expression. There is no compromise.

Links to Videos/Articles:

Watch Kircher working on replica of Kapaun crucifix 2014.

Colorado Central Magazine, Sculpting Humanity, Jaroso Artist
Lynn Kircher by Kenneth Jensen (April 2012)

Representative Works:

August 31, 2015

Ron Richmond

Art collector D. R. Heiniger captures the essence of Ron Richmond’s work by describing his paintings as “the presence of absence—or, the exquisite longing for the unattainable.”

Richmond has exhibited his paintings in solo and group shows in galleries and museums in major cities such as New York, Washington D.C., Houston, Atlanta, Scottsdale, San Francisco, and London. His work is collected by museums (BYU Museum of Art, Church History Museum, Springville Museum of Art); public collections (State of Utah, Salt Lake County, Snow College); corporations (Saks Fifth Avenue, United Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta Airlines, Hilton DoubleTree Hotels, Credit Suisse, Four Seasons Hotels); as well as by private individuals. He was commissioned by Utah State University to paint a mural that hangs in the Bingham Research Center in Vernal. Richmond received M.F.A. and B.F.A. degrees from Brigham Young University.

He has worked as a professional artist for 26 years, and is an adjunct professor of art at Snow College. Richmond competed as one of 12 finalists in the Grand Central Atelier Still Life Painting Competition in June, 2017. He was born in Denver, Colorado and currently lives in Mt. Pleasant, Utah.

“Visual magic without a larger purpose leads nowhere but to empty excess,” said Geoff Wichert in the online magazine 15bytes. “Ron Richmond … found a way out of this dilemma—a way to make art that is at once visually magical and yet substantial in content and meaning.”